Mashed potato gratin

Mashed potato gratin, originally uploaded by chrisfreeland2002.

8 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled & cubed
2 tsp kosher salt, separated
4 tsp butter
1/2 cup milk, more as needed
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan 
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 T chopped parsley

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Wash & peel potatoes.  Cut in cubes and place in medium saucepan.  Fill with cold water until covered, add 1 tsp salt.  Bring water to a boil.  Boil uncovered until potatoes are tender, approximately 12 minutes.  Once tender, drain potatoes and return to saucepan.  Add butter, milk, sour cream, Parmesan, remaining salt, and pepper.  Using electric mixer, beat potato mixture until smooth, adding more milk to bring to the right consistency - you want them creamy, not soupy.  Adjust salt and pepper, to taste.  Spoon into gratin dish, top with a bit of parmesan, parsley and ground pepper. Bake uncovered 10 minutes to melt Parmesan. Place gratin under low broiler for 3-5 minutes until top is browned.  Remove from oven & serve immediately.  

Serves 6.

Making Gumbo

Making Gumbo, originally uploaded by chrisfreeland2002.

Following Paula Deen's lead on this one: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/gumbo-recipe/index.html

Venison chili

Venison chili
Originally uploaded by chrisfreeland2002

Superbowl Sunday. Gotta make chili, had some venison in the freezer.

A Year of Not Blogging

Wow, where to start? It's been more than a year since I blogged here - made a recipe, photographed it, and committed my mostly improvised ramblings to the blog. Our blog. Our blog that's on the "blogosphere," a term our dear friend Brad Graham coined and he was further dismayed when the term 1) took off in popularity and 2) got an entry in the OED. Brad poo-pood it all, but I secretly think he liked this claim to fame. Not that he would ever admit it, mind you. He'd have gone to his grave shrugging off the fact that he invented the term blogosphere. And in January of last year, that's exactly what he did. Brad was found dead in his house on January 4, 2010. He was 41. He was supposed to have been at my New Year's Eve party the Friday before, as always, but wasn't feeling well. Some of his coworkers (and our mutual friends) were at my party and expressed concern for his absence, and for his overall health because recently he hadn't been as energetic, as lively. We were worried, we told him we were worried, and we were happy to learn he was scheduled to go to the doctor after the first of the year.

I had seen him a couple of weeks before at his annual holiday party (looking gaunt, and I told him as much), and then again on a casual weekday evening when we decided to get together for drinks & gumbo at his place. Since we were nearing Christmas, I brought him a tin of the Hard Rock Candy I had made the Sunday before, along with homemade single malt butter scotch. He was quite pleased with the treats and had a few that night.

So we didn't see him at NYE. I sent him a text message 2 days after while sitting in the theater to watch Avatar in 3D, with no response. Not entirely unusual, but not exactly right, either. I left the next morning for meetings in Washington DC, which was cold and miserable, and I was cranky about having to travel so early into the year. My meeting was with the National Institute of Health and the National Library of Medicine for my "real" job, participating in a workshop on defining a schema for biodiversity publications. I took this picture and uploaded it to Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisfreeland/4245044564/. I look at this picture as the last time my life made sense in 2010.

Less than 5 minutes later I got a call from Tagert. I knew something was up, but I couldn't leave the meeting. So I txtd him

I'm in dc in a mtg & can't use phone, but can txt. What's up?

His reply was

Sorry for this format. Brad Graham has died. Ken found him this morning.

I left the meeting & started talking with Tag. And honestly, from that point on the rest of the trip is a blur. I have flashes of activity, like standing at the platform waiting for the Red Line to take me to my hotel in Dupont, listening to Elton John on my iPod singing "Sacrifice", with tears streaming down my face. I was alone in DC while Brad's other friends were meeting in STL for an impromptu gathering, and that's where I wanted to be more than any other place in the world. But duty called, and I stayed through the meetings then made a return home, and within 2 hours of arriving in St. Louis I was over at Tagert's. That was tough, but so necessary.

And then the next day my partner and I had to make the very tough decision to put our 10 year old dog, Sam, to sleep. She'd been fighting cancer for more than a year, but it was clear she was getting weaker and her cough & discomfort were bad. We took her to the vet, fairly certain what the advise & options would be, and we were right. Our vet also knew Brad and so knew what a double whammy this was for us. We knew it was right thing to do, but that didn't make it any easier. I remember sobbing into my partner's neck, just shaking my head, not understanding why this was all happening at once. I stayed with Sam and she went peacefully with the help of the excellent doctors at Kingsbury Animal Hospital.

I was scheduled to leave for 10 days in Beijing at 4am the next morning, and as it turns out months before Tagert & our friend Mikey, plus me and my partner Chris, had purchased tickets that night for a Lady Gaga concert. None of us wanted to stay at home and feel sorry for ourselves, so we went and had a crazy, cathartic time. And then 5 hours later I was on a plane to Beijing.

The storm stopped there, thankfully, and the rest of 2010 went along with normal bumps & bruises, but nothing as brutal as losing the guy who completed Tagert & me. We were a great trio because we each had different relationships as duos: Brad & I had a bond over redheads and technology, Tag & Brad had SciFi and film, and together we had showtunes & shenanigans & laughter & friendship. So for Tagert & me to lose that essential third wheel has been a big adjustment.

And every time I went to blog, I thought of Brad. Tagert & I had talked to Brad, who was a PR/marketing whiz, about taking our blog to the next level - coverage in the local foodie mags, cooking segments on local shows, appearances and demos at STL food & wine events, publishing a cookbook, etc. But after Brad died, I felt alone in that endeavor. I mean, Tagert & I are quite capable dudes, but Brad was Mr. Connections. And without his help, it just seemed...pointless.

So throughout this year of course we've kept cooking, and I've got a stockpile of recipes that are now well-tested and ready to roll out. But I wonder if our moment has passed. Tagert & I set up this blog in 2007 as a way to advertise our unique culinary point of view, and now that I look around, there are many people doing our "downhome with a twist" thing. I feel I'm at a crossroads here, and I'm really curious from readers what *you* want from us, if anything. I still want to blog about food because I love food, I love to cook, and I think I have some unique insights to share with other people who like to cook, based on my rural upbringing and subsequent move to a diverse city full of new flavors and ideas.

So what do you think, dear reader? Have we lost you in this year of not blogging? Are you still interested in our recipes and stories about how we came to make them? Or, should we just close up shop, turn on Ina Garten, and leave the food writing to the pros? Leave your comments below. They really are appreciated!

Chris Freeland

Barbecue Sauce for Pulled Pork

Barbecue Sauce for Pulled Pork
Originally uploaded by TagDragon

I like my barbecue sauce slightly sweet, with some vinegar tanginess, and a little bit of a kick. This one has all three. I call this recipe barbecue sauce for pulled pork because of the pork roast pan drippings that are added. But, this is a good barbecue sauce for anything. If you’re not making the pulled pork don’t worry about the pan drippings. Just leave them out. And if you like more of a kick add more chipotle peppers and adobo sauce.

Ingredients
1 tablespoon Butter
2 cloves Garlic – finely minced
2 cups Ketchup
1 cup Cider Vinegar
½ cup Dark Brown Sugar - packed
½ cup Molasses
½ cup Dijon Mustard
½ cup Worcestershire Sauce
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1/3 cup Pork Roast Pan Drippings
1 Chipotle Pepper (from canned chipotle peppers in adobo) – seeded and finely chopped-optional
1 tablespoon Adobo Sauce from can-optional

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Do not let the garlic burn. Add all the remaining ingredients and stir until thoroughly combined. Bring to a boil then simmer for 20 to 30 minutes until sugar has completely dissolved and flavors have come together.

Makes about 4 cups

Pulled Pork

Pulled Pork
Originally uploaded by TagDragon

Boston Butt Pork Roast is an inexpensive cut of meat and when cooked properly makes delicious pulled pork that’s enough to feed a crowd. I do recommend getting the Boston Butt over a Picnic Roast. Both of these cuts come from the pork shoulder. It does take some planning to make pulled pork. Realizing that it needs to be started the day before and will then roast in the oven for over six hours the next day.

Ingredients
1 tablespoon Paprika
1 tablespoon Garlic Powder
1 tablespoon Dry Ground Mustard
1 tablespoon Onion Powder
1 tablespoon Italian Herbs
1 tablespoon Dark Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
2 tablespoons Kosher Salt
1 Yellow Onion – sliced and rings separated
1 5 to 7 pound Boston Butt Pork Roast

Combine all of the spices, paprika to the kosher salt, in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture over the entire pork roast working it into crevices and patting it down to adhere to the pork roast. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Mound a bed of onions in the middle of the roasting pan. Place pork roast fat side up on top of the onions and roast for six to seven hours. The pork roast will need to be tender and pull apart easily. An instant-read thermometer in the thickest part should register at least 170 degrees F.

Let the pork roast rest for 20 to 40 minutes or until it is cool enough to handle. (Reserve pan dripping for barbecue sauce.) Pull the pork while it is still warm. Remove the fat from top of pork roast. Using two forks or your hands shred the pork roast into small pieces and strips. A technique that can work is to hold the pork roast with one fork and use the second fork to pull and rake the meat apart. Discard the bone and any pieces of fat. Go through the meat a second time with your hands and tear any larger pieces into smaller bits and remove any remaining fat and tough parts. Some of the crispy outer bits of meat can be left in for texture and flavor.

Mix and serve with your favorite barbecue sauce or use the drippings to make a really great barbeque sauce.

Serves 12


Some of the onion will burn but the onion under the pork roast will taste amazing. My Barbecue Sauce for Pulled Pork will be posted later.

Hard Rock Candy

Root Beer Rock Candy, originally uploaded by chrisfreeland2002.

Hard candy is incredibly easy to make. There's a basic recipe for the candy itself and you use flavored oils for candy making and food coloring to make each batch unique. You can get the flavored oils at some craft shops or online. You can also use traditional flavored extracts (like vanilla or almond), though the flavor won't be as strong as with the oils.

Ingredients

2 cups white sugar

1 cup water

2/3 cup white syrup

1 t flavored oil

A few drops of food coloring

Powdered sugar

Boil sugar, water & syrup in a heavy bottom saucepan to 300 degrees. Use a candy thermometer to ensure proper cooking temperature. At 300 degrees (hard crack stage) add the oil and food coloring and boil until 310 degrees. Pour candy on clean & dry cookie sheet and let cool. Use the handle of a table knife to bust up the candy into small pieces. Drop into powdered sugar and toss well to coat, then sift off flour and store the candy in a ziplock bag or other dry container.

Warning: I know this is one of those "Well, duh" reminders, but DO NOT try to sample the candy while you're pouring it into the pan. It's kind of a cook's habit to dip a finger or spoon in to taste what you're preparing, but you cannot do that when making hard candy. It's like molten lava and will burn you. I know this from experience :-\

Chris